The Face Behind the Mask
by Hylian Shadow
Summary: A silly rumor about a strange TV channel shows Link a power he never realized he had. Everyone has a face he shows the world, as well as a face he hides from everyone else. For Link, those two faces are one and the same.
1. The Face Behind the Mask

_Author's Notes: This story is different from all of my other ones. This is a Legend of Zelda AU set in a world inspired by Persona 4. That said, it's only a crossover with the world, not the characters, so there aren't any P4 spoilers in here._

_Also, everything will get explained in the story, so as long as you're familiar with Zelda, this should eventually make sense._

**

* * *

The Face Behind the Mask**

"I've heard several of the students talking about seeing monsters."

"Students are good at gossiping. They probably haven't seen anything."

I didn't even bother looking up from the magazine I was thumbing through. Did it really matter what the students were gossiping about now? There was always some rumor or another going around; that was what happened at high schools, after all.

"What are you two going on about now?" Sheik asked as he sat down at the table. "I thought we were done for the day."

"We are," Malon replied. "We're just talking about something we've heard the students talking about."

Sheik sighed. "All right, and what are they talking about now?"

"They call it the Midnight Channel," Kafei replied. "Have you heard about it?"

"No, I can't say that I have."

I looked up and sighed. Kafei looked like he had something he had to say. "I've heard the name, but that's it."

Kafei nodded at me. "Okay. Well, the method I've heard is that at midnight on a rainy night, if you turn your television off and then look at the screen, you'll see something."

"Something?" Sheik asked, sounding unimpressed.

"Well, different people say you're supposed to see different things. Some say you see your soulmate, others say you see a former life, and _others_ say you see a monster from another world. I tried it."

Somehow that didn't surprise me. "You did?" I had to ask. "Then what did you see?"

"I saw a Keaton."

Sheik laughed and grabbed his briefcase. "Nice one, Dotour. I'm off; I've got to take care of some things."

"I did," Kafei replied as Sheik left. "I saw a Keaton. What, don't you believe me? Try it out. See what you see. It's supposed to rain tonight, so it should work."

"I'll think about it," Malon replied. "It's probably nothing, though."

He looked over at me. "What about you, Link?"

I raised an eyebrow at him. "If I remember, I'll give it a try. Maybe I'll see a Keaton, too."

---

I needed to get to bed; it was later than I thought. Wait... I glanced at the clock. It was almost midnight, so if I was going to try this, I might as well try. I turned the TV off.

Nothing happened.

That was honestly what I had expected. Just another silly rumor going around among the students. I shook my head and stood up. No point in staying up any longer. I headed towards my bedroom --

-- and stopped when I heard someone laugh. Where had that come from? There was nothing on but the lights. I turned around and checked, glancing at the TV even though I remembered turning it off.

Somehow, there was a figure there on the TV, a tall, broad, armored figure. He -- at least it struck me as a man -- stared outward. That was odd... Despite all of the armor he wore, he wasn't wearing a helmet, just a metal mask with the image of a smiling mouth full of sharp teeth that covered his nose and mouth.

"Wh... what in the world is this?" I said softly, staring at the image. This had to be some kind of trick, because the TV was clearly _off_, and how did something with no power have an image?

The figure on the screen turned to face me, and it felt like he was somehow staring out of the TV and seeing _me._ How was that...? No, this had to be a trick. This _had_ to be.

"Thou art I, and I am thou..." the voice was low and deep, and muffled by the mask, but there was something almost familiar about it.

"Wh-what are you talking about?"

His eyes -- red as blood -- narrowed; he was smiling. "I've been waiting for you... waiting for you to wake up."

I leaned in a little closer, trying to figure out where the image was coming from. It was weird -- I could easily see the room reflected on the screen, but the figure was standing where my reflection should've been.

"Wake up, Link. Wake us up."

"What -- whoa!" I jumped back as the figure leaned forward and reached out of the screen, one gauntleted hand brushing against my cheek; the metal was warm. That only made me jump again, falling backwards and sprawling out on the floor. One hand landed on the remote, turning the TV on by accident. As the image of the documentary I'd been ignoring earlier appeared, the figure vanished.

I stared at the TV for a moment. That didn't make sense. None of that made sense. I turned the TV back off, but the screen was blank.

Maybe I'd just imagined it?

Maybe I had. I didn't feel like trying to figure this out; I was just going to go to bed now. I could figure this out later... if I cared at all tomorrow.

---

"Get in your groups and use this time to work on your projects. Remember that these are due Monday, and this is the last time you'll be able to work on them in class, so don't waste this time."

While my students pulled their desks together, I took the stack of quizzes and sat down at my desk. I might as well grade some of them while they worked.

_This is your reality? No wonder you hide behind me. _The voice laughed.

I glanced up; no, everyone was busy working on their projects. None of them were close enough. I shook my head and went back to grading quizzes. I was just hearing things, right?

_Just hearing things, huh? So does that make me a "thing"? _It was the voice I'd heard from the TV last night, only now it was in my head. What did that mean?

It meant that I was imagining things, that's what. After all, what had I overheard someone talking about right before class started? The Midnight Channel. This was just my imagination.

_You don't have words for me, therefore I must be imaginary, huh? Nice logic, there._

"That's what you are," I muttered, looking around to make sure no one heard me. "You're just a figment of my imagination."

Another laugh. _Yes, because something imaginary can't be real._

"It can't be. That's why it's imaginary."

_Oh, really... It's not like people pretend to be something they aren't on a regular basis, is it? It's not like _you_ ever pretend to be someone you aren't._ The voice sounded proud of pointing that out.

"You don't know me," I hissed under my breath, glaring down at the stack of paper on my desk.

_I know you better than you do._

"Shut up." I leaned my head on one hand, rubbing my temples. "I don't care what you know."

I heard a giggle from somewhere else in the room and looked up. Several of my students quickly went back to their work, whispering to each other. That was great, I thought with a sigh; they heard me. That was what I deserved for answering that voice aloud, I figured, but it was easier to keep straight what was me and what was that damned voice when I talked.

I forced myself to go back to grading, deciding it was probably best to just pretend that hadn't happened.

---

"Link, er, is it all right if I talk to you for a moment?"

I sat back down and looked over at him; Kafei looked nervous. "What is it?"

"I overheard a couple of students laughing about how you've been muttering to yourself in class. Are you all right? That's not like you."

"I'm okay, really. Things are just... hectic lately." What was I supposed to do, admit that I was hearing a voice in my head? I sounded crazy enough without telling anyone.

Kafei sat down next to me. "Did you try it? The Midnight Channel, I mean. You've been acting really funny today. Did you see something?"

I glanced around to make sure no one could hear us, and then I leaned in a little closer. "Yeah, I saw something." Actually, that was it. Kafei said he saw that Keaton... maybe he'd understand. "It said something to me, too."

"Whoa, it talked? What did it say?"

"'Thou art I, and I am thou.' And then something about waking us up."

Kafei paled a little. "R-really?"

"Is something wrong?"

He leaned in. "The Keaton said that, too. And then it tried to reach out and grab me."

"_What?_" I gasped.

"It happened to you, too!"

"Has anything happened since then?"

"Nothing at all. Why? Did that happen to you, too?"

I shook my head. Then again... the thing in the TV had actually _touched_ me. Was that it?

_Ooooh, look at you. You're starting to catch on to how this works, aren't you?_

"Something like that," I replied, answering both of them at once.

Kafei nodded. "That's... wow. I've been afraid to say anything to anybody else because I figured they'd think I finally lost it. But it happened to you, too, so it's not just me..."

"Apparently not," I replied.

"Link, are you okay? You don't look so good."

I didn't know what to think about any of this, really. Even if Kafei had seen something _similar_ to what I did, he still saw something different. And he didn't hear anyone in his head, which I _did._ That was what bothered me the most; I heard a voice in my head that wasn't my own, and I didn't know what it was or how to get rid of it.

I didn't even know if I could or _should_ get rid of it, honestly. I sighed. "I'm just tired, is all."

"Then maybe we should wait and talk about this some other time then..."

---

I locked the door behind me and tossed my bag onto the table. This was... What had I done? _Damn it._ I was hearing a voice in my head now. Was I going crazy, or did this have something to do with the Midnight Channel? Was any of this real at all?

_Worry, worry, worry..._ the voice said with a laugh; it was the first time I'd heard it since I left campus. _Why are you so worried about this being real?_

"I'm... I'm not crazy."

_Of course you aren't. That's why I exist, after all._

"What are you talking about?" I fell onto the couch and closed my eyes. Why was I even doing this?

The voice laughed. _Meet me inside and we'll talk._

"Inside...?"

_Yeah. Inside. It's comfy in there._

I yawned. Why was I so sleepy now? No, it didn't matter. After today, some sleep would be good. Yes, that was it. Sleep would help...

I woke up somewhere other than my apartment. It was a field next to a forest, gently rolling ground covered in long grass waving in a breeze. This place was peaceful. _Really_ peaceful. And it reminded me of being back home.

"Is that a surprise?"

I turned toward the voice and jumped back. The armored man was there! "What is this place?" I gasped.

"This?" He spread his arms, his armor clinking with the motion. "Welcome to the inside of your soul."

"What?"

"This is your safe place. Y'know, where you come and hide when things get to be too much for you."

I narrowed my eyes. "And just who are you to know this?"

He reached up and pulled off the painted metal mask. "Haven't I already said? I'm you."

He certainly looked like me. His hair was darker and longer, but... that was my face. The strange armored man I saw on a turned-off TV on a rainy night had my face.

"How can that be?"

He grinned at that. "A question first, Link: do you always show your true self to people?"

"Of course I do. Why wouldn't I?"

He raised an eyebrow and chuckled. "Always? You _never_ fake a smile to make someone feel better or hide your true feelings about something?"

"Well, I..." I did sometimes, but... "Sometimes it's just polite."

"And sometimes you don't want people to realize how lonely you are."

"I'm not lonely!" That was a lie. I did get lonely sometimes. It seemed like all I did any more was work, and even if I had time, part of me just wanted to go home.

I looked around again. Home. I looked away. "What are you implying?"

He raised his mask up, giving me a good look at the smiling mouth painted on it. "Have you ever wondered where the strength to keep smiling comes from?" He slid the mask onto my face; the metal was oddly comfortable, fitting snugly against my skin. It was warm.

"What is...?"

"I give you that strength," he said, looking thoughtful. "Whenever you need it, you wear my mask. It makes you comfortable, doesn't it?"

I didn't know what to say to that. It was true that I was good at faking a smile, but... I didn't want anyone to worry about me.

He slid the mask off my face. "I'm you, Link. Well, it's more like I'm the face you show the world."

"It's nothing like that!"

"Oh? So you don't try to be everyone's knight? The one who helps everyone out? The man who's always friendly and smiling?" He spread his arms again. A suit of gleaming armor... a mask with a smile painted on it...

"None of this makes sense," I replied, flopping down to the ground. "So you're like a mask?"

He nodded. "I'm your Persona. I'm the face you show the world, but I'm also the part of you that you hide."

The part I hid... the part that was lonely, or the part that really just wanted everyone to leave him alone? Everyone seemed to depend on me, but...

"You're starting to get it, aren't you?"

I looked back at him, noting the spikes on his pauldrons and the sharp teeth of the smile. It was mighty and gleaming and yet somewhat threatening. "So... are you something good or something evil?"

He laughed at that. "_That_ is entirely up to you. I'll do whatever it is that you want me to. I'll defend you when you need it, and I'll destroy for you when you want that. But I think I've confused you enough for one day, so I'll let you get some real sleep."

"Wait. What's your name?"

"My name? I don't have one."

He didn't have a name? That wouldn't work. If this was real, then... I needed something better to call him than a voice or a mask. "You're me, right? But you're, er, darker."

And he was. His hair was black and seemed to just fade into the air at the edges and his eyes were red. Everything about him seemed darker and more dangerous than me.

He chuckled at that. "It seems I am."

"Okay, so if I'm Link, then you're Dark Link." That made sense, but it also sounded a little silly. Then again, it was something to call him.

"Dark Link, hmm? I think I like that. Yeah, that works for a name." He grinned again. "Now," he held a card out to me. "You need your sleep. Just remember what I've said, okay?"

I took the card, not knowing what else to do. "I'll try..."

"That's all I ask for. Now go to sleep."

---

I woke up to the sound of my cell phone ringing. I tried to roll over and ignore it, but all I did was roll off the couch.

"All right, all right, I'm up..." I muttered, sitting up and rubbing my head. What time was it? Oh, about nine. Damn, I hadn't slept very long at all, had I? It wasn't even close to midnight yet.

I grabbed my phone. "Hello?"

"Hey, Link, it's Kafei. Are you home?"

"Yes, I am. Why?" That was an odd question.

"You are? Then why didn't you answer when I knocked?"

Someone knocked? That was odd. The sound of someone knocking didn't wake me up, but my phone did?

"I'm sorry, Kafei. I was taking a nap. I must not have heard you..."

He laughed. "Oh, then I should be the one apologizing. I didn't mean to wake you up."

"Either way, I'm up now. Did you need something?"

"I just... this is going to sound pretty stupid, but I figured since it's Friday, we could maybe go somewhere and talk?"

About the Midnight Channel, no doubt. What would it hurt? "Sure. Are you in the parking lot? I can meet you down there."

Kafei chuckled. "Yeah, that works just fine. Then I'll see you down here in a min -- huh?"

"Kafei?"

"Just heard something in the bushes. Must be a cat or something. Anyway, I'll be waiting down here."

"I'll be right down." I hung up and grabbed my jacket. "I wonder how much I should tell him..."

_That's your choice, really._

"I don't know how much he'd believe me..."

_Then don't tell him. It doesn't matter either way. _

I slid my phone into my jacket pocket and stopped when my fingers brushed something glossy. What? I pulled it out -- it was a card, a large rectangular card with an ornate blue and white border ringing a full-body picture of Dark Link. He had a long sword in one hand and a gleaming shield in the other. He was left-handed, but somehow, that didn't surprise me. If he was me, then of _course _he was left-handed.

"What's this for?"

_Keep it with you. You might need it._

"All right. What do I need it for?"

_If you need it, you'll know. Your friend's waiting for you._

I sighed and slid the card into my pocket. "All right, I'm going."

It didn't take long to head downstairs and out into the parking lot. Weird; there was Kafei's truck, but where was Kafei?

"Kafei? Where are you?" The parking lot was quiet, the only sound that of the traffic from the nearby street.

"Get away from me!"

_To the left!_

I turned that way; someone was running across the parking lot. It was Kafei! Something large and black followed him. I started running after them, trying to figure out what that thing was.

_Watch yourself!_

"Kafei!"

"Link! Run!" Kafei managed to scramble on top of the dumpster; the thing clawed at the sides but couldn't climb up after him. He was safe, then.

The thing sagged down... and then it turned around. It didn't really even have a form, just two arms ending in jagged claws and a head with a mask on it rising out of what looked like a black puddle. What was this thing?!

_A Shadow._

A _what_? I took a step back, but the Shadow had already noticed me. It started towards me, clawing at the ground to pull itself closer. If only I could get on the dumpster -- no, that wouldn't work. That would get us away from it, but the thing would still be there... and it might go after someone else.

_Move, you idiot!_

I yelped and jumped back as the thing swiped at me. Damn it, I was being careless! I didn't know what else to do, so I started running across the parking lot, the Shadow in pursuit.

"Dark Link, what do I do?" I gasped as I ran.

_Let me out so I can kill it!_

"How do I do that?!"

_Use the card, idiot!_

"_How?!_" I shrieked, right as I reached one side of the parking lot. Damn damn damn; I just ran straight down a dead end. What was I supposed to do now? I turned around so I could keep an eye on the Shadow and yanked the card out of my pocket.

"Any hints at all would be nice..." I muttered. The damn thing was slinking towards me, stalking me.

_...I can't. You have to be the one to call me. I can't tell you how._

I grit my teeth and thrust the card towards the monster. "Get back, monster, or I'll use this!"

The monster didn't even slow down. It just kept coming towards me, the empty eyes of the mask staring at me.

I didn't know what I was supposed to do. How was I supposed to use a card? "Dark Link, please, help me!" I closed my eyes. "Defend me!"

There was a sound like glass breaking, followed by a blast of wind that swirled around me. I opened my eyes -- Dark Link was in front of me, charging at the Shadow. He raised his sword and almost effortlessly sliced the Shadow in half. Black blood splattered everywhere, quickly fading away, as the thing's body dissolved into a cloud of gray smoke.

"Wh-what...?"

Dark Link turned to me and smiled -- well, his eyes were smiling; he was wearing his mask again. "I was beginning to wonder if you'd figure it out."

"I just..."

"You asked for my help, and you pulled me out." He shrugged. "And here I am."

"Link, are you -- whoa!" Kafei skid to a halt nearby, staring at Dark Link in terror.

I moved to stand next to my Persona. "It's okay, Kafei! He's... um..."

"I am Link's power," Dark Link said with a chuckle, and then he faded away. The card reappeared in mid-air; I snatched it out of the air and held it close.

Kafei just stared. "That was... What the...? Wait, where'd that monster go?"

"He killed it," I said softly, holding the card out so Kafei could see it.

"B-but who _is_ he, Link?"

I took a deep breath. I needed to admit it now. "He's the one I saw on the Midnight Channel."

His eyes got wider, and he moved in to get a good look at Dark Link's card. "_He's_ the one you saw? Then how did he...?" Kafei looked at me. "Link, we _have _to talk."

I nodded. "Maybe we should just stay in my apartment. Then we don't have to worry about anyone overhearing..." Or seeing, for that matter. Oddly enough, it didn't seem that anyone had heard either of us yelling or seen the Shadow. Normally, that would bother me, but right now, that meant less to try and explain.

Still, we needed to get inside. "Come on, Kafei," I said, holding out my free hand. "Let's go inside."

"O-okay. Link, there's an explanation for this... right?"

_What is he talking about?_

"You mean the Keaton you saw?"

"Y-yeah."

_Ah, I see. So your friend has seen his Persona as well... He isn't awake yet._

"Not awake?" I said under my breath as I pulled out my keys and unlocked the door. "You mean like us?"

_Yeah. We're awake, which means that you are both aware of me and able to call on my power. He isn't, not entirely..._

"Link, are you talking to yourself?"

I laughed at that. In some ways, yes, I was. "It's a long story, Kafei. Make yourself comfortable, and I'll try to explain it as best as I can..."


	2. The Eye of Truth

_Author's note: Well, I said _Persona 4_ in the notes for the last chapter, but I think I need to broaden that a bit to include _Persona 2_, too. Again, there aren't any spoilers for the games; I'm just borrowing and tweaking some ideas._

_Thanks for the reviews. I'm glad to know this idea isn't _too_ off-the-wall. _

* * *

**The Eye of Truth**

"This is... This is insane."

I glanced out the window again. I'd had enough time to fill Kafei in on the basics -- mainly the part about how Dark Link was my Persona -- but there still weren't any police around. Did this mean no one heard the screams? That was... weird.

Maybe the Shadow did something. After all, I'd never heard anything about something like that, but if Dark Link knew what they were, that couldn't have been the only one. Did it have something to do with the Midnight Channel, too?

"Link... does that mean the Keaton I saw is my Persona?"

I shrugged and turned around. "Probably. Our stories are the same, after all. We both tried the Midnight Channel, and we both saw something. If they both said the same thing, then it's safe to say that you might be right."

"And you said that the man -- I mean, Dark Link -- reached out of the screen and touched you..." Kafei shook his head. "The Keaton reached for me, too, but I jumped out of its reach. Maybe I shouldn't have done that..."

"You didn't know, and I don't blame you." I forced a laugh. "I almost jumped out of my skin when he touched me, after all." Besides, I thought, things didn't normally reach out of TVs.

Kafei laughed a little. "Yeah, I bet you did. Hey... it's getting late. Do you think we could try the Midnight Channel tonight? I mean... it should show up more than once, right?"

"I... think so?" How was I supposed to know, honestly? Until Kafei mentioned it, I didn't even know the Midnight Channel existed at all. And all I knew about Personas was what Dark Link had told me, and that wasn't exactly much.

He nods. "It's worth a try, if nothing else. Maybe the Keaton will try to touch me again..."

"Maybe. At any rate, it's not midnight yet. Want to grab something to eat?" I didn't know about him, but I was hungry. After all, I'd been asleep almost since I got home.

"Yeah, that works. I don't really feel like going out right now, but is it a good idea to have someone come by? I mean... that thing was outside..."

He had a point; what if there was another Shadow out there just waiting to attack someone? There was an easy way to check. All I needed to do was go outside and look. If there was one, well, Dark Link could kill it.

I reached in my pocket, feeling the already-familiar shape of Dark Link's card. "We can call for pizza or something, and while we're waiting, I'll go check the parking lot."

Kafei looked at me and then nodded. "Okay. I'll stay in here, then. Oh, hey... do you have any beer or anything like that? I really need a drink right now."

"There's some in the fridge."

"Good." He stood up and headed toward the small kitchen. "I can call it in, if you want. Same as usual, right?"

"Yeah. That's fine. If you've got that under control, then, I'm going to go have a look around."

"Be careful, all right?"

I nodded and stepped outside, making my way carefully down the stairs.

The parking lot was empty, even more so than usual. It was a Friday night, true, but there was normally someone wandering around outside. It felt odd. Still and calm and... Where had that thing come from, anyway?

I ran a finger up and down the card in my pocket. "Dark Link, what do you know about Shadows?" I asked softly.

_Not much, really. They attack anything that gets in their way, and they fight to kill._

"Then... you mean... if I hadn't stopped it, that Shadow would've killed Kafei?"

_Kafei or some other human it came across, yes._

I sighed, reaching up and rubbing the side of my head. "But how did it get here?"

_I don't know._

That wasn't a comforting answer at all. I shook my head. "Might as well go back inside, then; there's no point in standing out here in the dark."

Dark Link didn't answer. I wasn't expecting him to, really. What could he possibly say? If he didn't know, then he didn't know. I'd just have to find someone who _did. _In the end, it didn't really matter what a Shadow was or where it came from, just so long as it didn't get a chance to hurt anyone.

"See anything?" Kafei asked as I went back inside.

"No."

"So just the one... weird. I've never seen anything like it before."

I forced out a quick laugh and sat next to Kafei on the couch. "I've never seen any of this before, Kafei, but apparently it's all real."

He nodded. "Either that, or you and I are sharing a hallucination."

"Let's see what happens at midnight," I said. "Maybe then things will start making more sense."

xXx

"It's almost midnight."

I stood up and stretched before walking over to the TV and turning it off. "All right. Let's see if the Midnight Channel comes on again."

Kafei walked over to stand beside me. "Yeah."

At first, nothing happened, but then an image flickered into view. Dark Link and a large Keaton stood side by side, staring towards us. The Keaton was sitting and Dark standing; the Keaton's head came up to Dark's chest.

"See?" Kafei gasped. "I told you I saw a Keaton!"

"I see that..." I leaned in a little closer to the screen. "I don't get it. If the Keaton is your Persona, then..." Dark Link was my Persona, and he looked like, well, a darker version of me. But the Keaton wasn't even _human._ How could it be Kafei's Persona?

"I don't know," Kafei replied, tapping the screen. "Yours looks human, but mine doesn't... Maybe it's not my Persona after all."

"Maybe," Dark Link said from on the screen. "And maybe you two are focusing too much on the obvious."

Kafei sighed. "What are you talking about?"

The Keaton laughed. "A Persona is a mask of sorts, yes? Then why must we all be human? After all... humans project their traits onto animals. Why can we not return the favor?"

Kafei leaned back. "I... I don't see how this could work."

Keatons were intelligent beings known to grant knowledge and other abilities to those capable of seeking them out and answering their riddles. The myths I'd heard also said they were fast as the wind and fond of pranks, but they were also known to protect those who'd earned their favor.

"Oh, ho... perhaps you aren't ready after all," the Keaton said.

"And maybe we just need to be a little more _direct_," Dark Link replied. I saw motion and turned back to the TV just as Dark Link reached out and grabbed me by the arm, pulling me towards the screen.

My arm went straight through. There was nothing more than faint resistance, almost like parting a curtain. I felt a second hand on my arm; he was pulling me into the TV!

"Whoa!" I snapped my other arm out, trying to find something -- anything -- I could hang onto. The only thing I could hang onto was Kafei.

"Holy...! What's going on?!" Kafei yelled.

I tried to yell an answer, but I never got the chance. My head and shoulders passed through the curtain of the screen, and then Dark Link grabbed me by the shoulders and yanked me the rest of the way inside. I tumbled forward and then downward, landing on a smooth, cool floor.

There was another yelp, and someone landed beside me. "Ow..." Kafei muttered. "That hurt..."

I sat up slowly -- yeah, that did hurt a little -- and looked around. I couldn't really see where we were; there was plenty of light, but it was really foggy here for some reason. The floor was the only thing I could really see; it was smooth, like tile, but it seemed to be one large piece of something.

"Wh-where are we?" Kafei asked. "Are we inside the TV?"

"You could say that," Dark Link replied, kneeling down next to me and holding out a hand. "Are you all right?"

"I think so..." I muttered, taking his hand and letting him pull me up to my feet. "What was that about, anyway?"

Dark Link laughed. "I was being direct. Maybe now that you're in here, a certain pair of someones will go talk."

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Kafei asked.

Dark Link turned towards Kafei and laughed again. "You and Keaton need to talk. Don't worry; there's no hurry. But while you do, Link and I are going to take a look around."

I waited until we were out of sight of Kafei and Keaton before leaning in. "Are we looking for anything?"

"Not really. We're just taking a look around to see what we can find." He smirked. "Besides, those two need to talk, and I doubt they want us listening. And I don't really like standing around doing nothing, so I'm doing something."

I could see his point; it wasn't like I could help Kafei out, after all, and some things were just personal. There were some things I didn't want to _ever_ tell others...

For a little while, we walked in near-silence; the only sound other than our footsteps was Dark humming a song I only halfway remember. This was comforting, having him here. I wasn't sure why, but I didn't really care.

Paper rustled under one of my boots, and I looked down. Sure enough, I'd just stepped on a sheet of paper. What was something like this doing here? I knelt down and picked it up.

"'My secret confession'," I said, reading the paper aloud. "'One of the guys in my building comes in really late and makes a ton of noise with his car. I want to sneak down there sometime and tear his car up for him, just to shut it up for good.' What's this about?"

Dark shrugged, his armor clinking with the motion. "I don't know. Someone apparently hates some guy's car."

I shook my head and folded the paper up, sticking it in my pocket. It was just some weird piece of paper in a weird place; I'd throw it away when we got back. Speaking of which, "Dark, where are we?"

"What do you mean?"

"Something tells me this isn't just inside a TV."

He laughed. "Yeah. All I know is that this is another world, and that here I don't have to rely on your strength of will to manifest like this. I like it."

"My strength of will?"

"You haven't noticed? That's why you had to call me out to fight that Shadow -- I can't take form in your world unless you give me form."

"Which means that it's possible that I can't call you when I need to?"

Dark Link wrapped an arm around my shoulders. "Considering how stubborn you are, I doubt that'll happen. Besides, it's not like --"

"Who's there?" a man's voice called out.

Dark Link and I looked at each other before I called back: "We're just looking around."

I heard footsteps, soft footsteps, and then the voice asked, "Is he your Persona?"

"Yes, he is."

A laugh. "I've never met anyone with a Persona before!" Someone walked out of the fog. It was a little boy, light brown hair hanging in his face, wearing a worn pair of jeans and a faded blue shirt. He wore a mask, a pale mask set in a serious expression, red paint curving along its cheeks. I couldn't tell how old he was. An older child, probably, judging by his height.

"Hello," I said, smiling. "Who are you?"

The little boy looked up at me, his hair moving back to show the blue V on his mask's forehead. "I'm Nobody." His voice was the man's voice we'd heard before.

"You're nobody? But everyone has a name." Then again, I gave Dark Link his name, didn't I? But no, this boy wasn't a Persona; he was just a boy. People had names.

"I don't. I don't have a name. I'm Nobody."

This was strange. What was a boy with no name doing in a place like this? And why did he have such a deep voice? "Are you lost?"

"No. I live here."

"Someone lives here?" I heard Kafei ask from nearby.

The boy turned his head to look at something off to my right. "You have a Persona, too!"

I turned, but I couldn't see anything through the fog. How could the little boy see? "Kafei, are you all right?"

After a long moment, Kafei and Keaton walked out of the fog, stopping next to me. "I'm fine," Kafei said, giving the little boy an odd look. "Who is this kid? I didn't think anyone lived here..."

"I live here," the boy said again, looking up at Kafei. "I've never met anyone else with a Persona before."

"Who are you, though?"

The boy sighed. "I've already said. I'm Nobody."

"Look," Kafei snapped. "Everything has some kind of title. 'Nothing' is exactly that: _no thing._ You're here and you're a person, meaning you can't be _nobody._"

"Kafei..." I said softly, though I doubt he heard me. He had a point, but at the same time, this wasn't our world. We couldn't assume things worked the same here.

Dark Link stepped closer to me. "Something's moving around over there." He was looking into the fog behind the boy.

"I don't hear anything," I replied.

"Hm. Maybe it's nothing, but... I'm not taking chances."

"I told you!" the little boy said, his deep voice practically growling the words. "I'm _Nobody_!"

Kafei strode forward. "We're going in circles. Take that stupid mask off and talk to us already!" He snatched the mask off. "Holy _shit_! What's going on here?!"

The boy had no face. No mouth, no nose, no eyes. It was almost like someone wearing pantyhose over their face -- there were the vague suggestions of features, but nothing more. How could someone not have a face? Was this why he said he was Nobody?

Nobody felt his face -- or at least what little he had of one -- and then started waving his arms frantically around, kneeling down and feeling the floor. He was... looking for something, looking for his mask? He couldn't see without the mask on, could he? I started to step forward, but Dark Link grabbed me and held me back.

"No; something's coming."

I could hear it now: slow, steady footsteps approaching us from behind Nobody.

"Give him back the mask." The voice was Nobody's, but it wasn't coming from the little boy. It came instead from a tall, broad figure -- easily head and shoulders over me -- who strode out of the fog. All I could do was stare and try to make sense of him -- hair white as snow, a massive sword made of two twisted blades, jet black armor that looked like leather but gleamed like steel... And his face; his face was identical to the mask that Nobody wore.

Kafei yelped and fell backwards, the mask clattering to the floor. The tall man's eyes -- white and empty and _piercing_ -- narrowed, and he put a hand on Nobody's shoulder.

I knelt down and picked the mask up before walking over and kneeling beside the little boy. "It's okay. I've got your mask, see? It's right here..."

Nobody felt around and finally found the mask, and I helped him raise it to him face. Poor little guy; I felt sorry for him. No name, no face, living in a strange world full of fog...

"It's okay, Kishin. I'm fine now," Nobody said softly, putting a hand on the taller man's hand and then looking up at me.

"He has no right to touch you."

"It's okay! He didn't hurt me. And maybe... maybe now he'll believe me."

Kafei shook his head wildly. "I'm sorry, really sorry! I - I didn't know!"

"See?" Nobody said softly. "They're from outside. They don't understand the way it is here."

"They have Personas," Kishin replied; the only change was the direction the voice came from. "So you and I aren't the only ones of our kind."

I turned towards Kishin; this all made sense now. There was a reason Nobody's mask looked like Kishin's face. "You're his Persona, aren't you?"

Kishin merely nodded.

"How long have you been here? Can you leave?"

"Why would we wish to leave? This place is our home."

"It's quiet here," Nobody added, "except for when the Shadows get scary."

I turned back to Nobody. "Shadows?" The thing in the parking lot... Dark had called it a Shadow. "Do they attack you?"

"For the most part, they keep to themselves. We stay away from them as much as we can."

"But sometimes they get scary and go looking for things to attack."

"We think that someone is making them act this way. There was a time when it wasn't like this."

Kafei climbed to his feet, glancing at Nobody, then Kishin. "If the Shadows are here, then how did one come after me?"

"We don't know. We've been trying to investigate that --"

"-- and find out why Shadows leave and humans come here. There've been others --"

"-- but they don't have Personas. They are humans, in small groups, with strange devices."

"Some of them kill the Shadows. Some of them catch the Shadows and take them somewhere."

Kafei looked at me. "Sounds like two groups, then."

"Maybe," I replied. "And maybe they're just doing different things." I didn't like this. The Shadow had clearly been trying to kill Kafei... but if it came from this world, how did it get to the parking lot at my apartment complex?

I shook my head. "Have you seen anything odd, little guy?" Even if it was the closest thing he had to a name, I just couldn't bring myself to call him 'Nobody'.

"Yeah. There are weird papers talking about confessions. What's that?"

"Every time new papers appear, the Shadows start hunting."

Confessions...? Like that weird paper Dark Link and I found? "How often do these papers appear?"

"Time is hard to measure in this world."

"But sometimes it gets less hazy here, and we hear voices in the distance."

"Then more papers show up, and I have to drive the Shadows away from him."

I don't like the sounds of this. Though this _would_ explain why the Shadow was so relentless. "Does this mean someone's stirring the Shadows up? Confessions... Did someone sent that Shadow after you, Kafei, or did you just happen to be the unlucky person in the parking lot at the time?"

"What?" Kafei gasped. "But wouldn't that mean... someone might be trying to kill me?"

Keaton paced a quick circle around Kafei, wrapping its tails around him. "Do not be so quick to assume. It is possible that these are all unrelated."

"Besides," Dark Link added, "we don't know who's behind this, so we don't know who to go strike down."

I felt a tug on my sleeve and looked down at Nobody.

"Are you going to help us?"

I glanced over at Dark Link -- who winked and cracked his knuckles -- and then nodded. "Our Personas let us fight the Shadows, right? That means that if someone's trying to use the Shadows to hurt people, we might be the only ones who can stop it."

There had to be a reason we had this power, right? Besides, I couldn't just walk away, not if people were getting hurt. Not if I had a chance to stop it.

"Very well, then," Kishin said with a faint smile. "We will do what we can on this side, while you do what you can on your side. Perhaps when we put both sides together, this will start making more sense. Come. I know where the exit is. You shouldn't stay here long."

"Wait... before you go, promise you'll be back."

I nodded again and smiled. "We'll be back, little guy. We're working together now, right?" It had to be so lonely here with only his Persona for company... even if I never found the answers to our questions, I'd come back. I'd come back and visit just so he wouldn't have to be alone.

"Okay!" Nobody laughed, and then he started digging in one of his pockets. "Then I have a present for you, Link!"

"You do?"

"Yeah! It might be able to help you." He pulled a monocle out of his pocket and held it up. "See? It's an eye that can see the truth. You can have it."

I took the monocle and held it up. It was metal, though I couldn't tell what kind -- I didn't know of any metal that gleamed purple in the light. The lens itself was tinted purple, except for a lighter, almost pupil-like pink area in the center. I'd never seen anything like it before.

"An eye to see the truth," I said softly, closing my eyes and putting the monocle on over my left eye. The monocle suddenly felt warm, and I felt something gently gripping the bridge of my nose. Weird. And even stranger, there was a faint tingle around my eyes. It didn't hurt; I barely even felt it.

"Uh, Link... Are you sure that's a good idea?" Kafei asked.

I opened my eyes. The fog was gone, for the most part, and for the first time I could see where we really were. It looked like... No, there wasn't really a single word I could attach to this. The floor, smooth and gray, stretched in all directions, though in the distance I could barely make out what looked like a railing and a few scattered gates. The sky was a dark, dark blue, and all of the horizons glowed with what looked almost like twilight.

"This is your world...?"

"You can see now!" Nobody said with a laugh. "Yes, this is home."

"Link, what does he mean that you can see?" Kafei demanded.

"The fog... I can see through the fog now." I kept looking around, noticing what looked like a large TV sitting against the railing not far from us. "That must be the exit..."

Dark Link put a hand to his head and closed his eyes, growling softly. I reached over and put a hand on his shoulder. "Dark, are you okay?"

"Yeah..." he said softly, opening his eyes and blinking several times. For a second, his eyes looked almost purple, but then they changed back to red as he started looking around. "I can see now."

Nobody laughed. "Of course you can. Now that Link can see the truth, you can, too."

"What does that mean?" Kafei asked. "Then the fog isn't real?"

Kishin crossed his arms. "The fog is real, but it isn't truth."

"What?"

I shook my head. "We can worry about that later, Kafei. For now..." I was starting to get tired now, really tired. How long had we been here? "For now, we should probably get back."

He sighed. "You're probably right."

I nodded and headed over to the TV. "So just step through here, and we'll be back..." I turned to Dark Link and smiled at him. "See you later."

He smiled back. "Whenever you need me."

"I'll be waiting for you to come back!" Nobody called.

I turned around and waved. "I'll see you then!" Then I stepped through the screen and back into my apartment. I took my monocle off, since I didn't need it here, and slid it into my jacket pocket next to Dark Link's card. It made sense to keep the two together.

After a moment, Kafei stumbled out behind me, looking around as if trying to convince himself he was back. "Did that really just happen...?"

I pulled Dark Link's card out of my pocket and held it up. "Yes, it just happened."

He fumbled in his pockets for a moment and then pulled out a card of his own. I didn't need to see it to know what was on it: blue and white border ringing a picture of Keaton.

"Holy... This is crazy. This is all crazy. No one sees anything like this, Link! They all think it's some stupid urban legend! What are we going to do now?"

What could we do? "We're going to just go on like normal, but we're going to keep an eye out for anything strange."

"Normal? How is this supposed to be normal, Link? Normal people don't have Personas!"

"I know that! Still, what good will it do us to overreact, Kafei? We can't explain this. We don't even know for sure that there's anything happening besides some weird coincidences. Just... Just keep an eye out for anything that seems weird."

He sighed. "Yeah, you have a point. Besides, we work at a school, so we might overhear something there."

I nodded. "That's how we learned about the Midnight Channel, right? Don't worry. We'll figure something out." I hoped that was true.

"Sorry, I just... It's a lot to take in all at once."

"I know." I glanced at the clock -- just after one. Somehow, it felt like we'd been in the TV for longer than an hour. Did time work differently in there? That was possible.

"Hey, Link? Is it okay if I just sleep on your couch or something? I don't think I trust myself to drive home now."

"Sure. Then I guess we can talk more about this in the morning."

xXx

"Link!"

I groaned and rolled over, trying to remember why Kafei was yelling at me. Wait, he did stay here, didn't he? "What is it?"

"Come here!" He sounded a little freaked out. Was he all right?

I staggered into the living room. Kafei was on the floor in front of the couch, staring at the TV.

"...a horrific scene at the Crestfield Heights apartment complex this morning. A man was found dead in the driver's seat of his parked car. Police have not released his name or any details, but one anonymous source has called it a car accident..."

Kafei looked over at me. "...does that make sense to you? That doesn't make sense to me. If the car is parked, how could it be an accident?"

I sat down on the couch. "That does seem pretty weird..." Wait... I pulled the confession out of my pocket and looked down at it. "'I want to sneak down there sometime and tear his car up for him, just to shut it up for good.'"

"What's that?"

_Interesting... _

I handed the paper over. "Something I found in the TV last night."

Kafei looked at it and then up at me. "Nobody and Kishin said the papers seem to be connected to the Shadows, right? Does that mean that _this_..." His eyes widened. "Does that mean that he was killed by Shadows?"

"Maybe it does... but there's something we're missing, isn't there?" Missing... I grabbed my jacket and pulled out my monocle, sliding it on and looking at the paper again.

There was more text there now. Above the words "my secret confession" was a symbol I didn't recognize, ringed by the phrase "release the darkness and emerge the pain." I told Kafei what I saw.

"What does that mean, though?"

I sighed. "I don't know. And we don't even know for sure that there's any connection at all..." I shook my head and took my monocle back off. "Still... pay attention to the news and see if there are any other weird deaths."

He nodded. "And listen to the school gossip and see if anyone's talking about secret confessions. There has to be a source for this, right?"

"Yeah, there has to be. We just have to find out what it is."

Kafei stared off into space for a second. "Keaton says the same thing. We need to just observe for now and not jump to any conclusions."

_Keaton is right. Rushing in is dangerous._

"Right. So, then... since we can't really do any of that right now..." This was a strange idea, but...

_Nothing wrong with working off the stress, y'know. Besides, I like to play._

"What is it, Link?"

"How about we just go do _something_ today? Something that has nothing to do with this, just to get our minds off everything that happened last night for a while."

He seemed to think about that, and then he nodded. "Yeah, that sounds like an idea. Last night was really crazy. A break's probably a good idea."

"Good. Then let's get ready and go... before something else goes crazy."


	3. Inner Fire

_Author's Notes: I apologize for the long wait for this. I'm also going to do what I should've done in the first place and say that this story is inspired by the entire _Persona _series. There still aren't any spoilers for that series, however.__  
_

* * *

**Inner Fire**

Had it really been a week since we went inside the TV? An entire week and nothing unusual had happened. It was almost enough to chalk it all up as just a strange dream.

But only almost. There was still plenty of evidence proving that it was real: the monocle, Dark's card, and most notable, Dark's near-constant presence. I wasn't sure if something had changed or if I was just paying attention now, but I could tell he was there, watching the world through me. It was a strange feeling. Not really good or bad, just... weird.

_Bang!_

I jumped, looking around the room. No one else was in here -- of course not; all the students had gone home for the day. Still, I heard _something_, and I wanted to know what. I barely had time to stand up when I heard a yell. I ducked out into the hallway... and saw several students and something wooden on the floor.

Oh, right. Sheik said he'd have to stay and help one of his classes set up for the open house tomorrow afternoon. I nodded to myself and went back into my classroom, easing the door closed behind me.

It wasn't good to be this jumpy.

_Yeah, but don't relax too much. If something does happen, you need to be ready._

"If something happens," I muttered, walking over to sit on my desk. "I haven't seen anything unusual, haven't heard anything unusual... I haven't even heard much about the Midnight Channel! It's just... just..."

_Just what?_

I reached into my pocket and pulled out Dark Link's card, glaring at it. "If I didn't know better, I'd think I imagined all of it."

_And do you know better?_

"I don't know, Dark. Do I?" I crushed the card in my hand, feeling the already-familiar gentle tug as it shattered and Dark Link appeared in front of me.

He laughed. "Apparently you do."

"I don't have much of a choice." I replied. "I just don't like this. I feel like I'm in over my head."

"Okay, what would make you feel better?"

"How about an idea what's going on here? I didn't even know Personas existed until a week ago!"

Dark Link laughed, pulling off his mask and setting it on the desk. "Does it matter? You know now, and you also accept my power."

Did I really have much of a choice with that, either? I sighed.

"You worry too much. Do what you can. That's all you can do." He grinned. "It just so happens that 'all you can do' is a lot."

Was that so? "I don't even know what all you can do. I know I can call you to fight for me, but is there more?"

"Depends. I've got a few tricks. You want to know what I can do?"

"It would be nice, yes." It would give me a better idea of _something_, at least.

He chuckled. "Well, then, let me give you --"

Someone screamed out in the hall. That didn't sound like the startled yells from earlier. This one sounded terrified.

"Get back!"

I ran out into the hall. I was overreacting, right? Someone dropped something, maybe fell...

There was something down the hall, something shadowy and inhuman. It looked almost like a hand with a head coming from the wrist. What kind of creature was that?

"A Shadow..." Dark Link said next to me.

"Here?!"

He growled. "No time for that!"

He was right. If there were Shadows here, in the school... I had to stop them. "Let's go. Hey, over here!"

The strange thing stopped on one finger and turned towards me. "Yeah, you heard me!" I yelled, taking a step towards it. "Come and get me!"

It chittered in a disturbing way and then pulled itself up into the air, pointing at me. Dark Link jumped in front of me as a bolt of lightning shot forward. Even with Dark in the way, it hurt, lancing through me and leaving a very not-right-feeling tingle; I fell to one knee.

"Damned thing," Dark hissed, pulling himself back up and then holding out a hand to pull me to my feet. "If it won't close the distance, we'll have to; let's move!"

"Right."

It didn't take long to get to the end of the hall; Dark Link drew his sword and charged the hand-thing while I took the chance to look around. There were more of the hand-things, pawing at the door to a nearby classroom; I could see a couple of students through the glass, trying to hold the door shut.

Those monsters weren't getting in there, not while I was here. "Hey, _you_! Here I am, right here!"

The hand-things stopped clawing at the door and turned towards me. Three of them, and that one hit me hard enough... I took a few steps back, and the Shadows followed me. At least I was leading them away from the students. Maybe those students could get out a window or something now that they didn't have to hold the door shut.

I heard a curse behind me as it felt like something slammed into me. I sagged against the wall. What was that...?

"Shit, where'd all these bastards come from?" Dark snarled from next to me; he sounded hurt.

I turned towards him and saw two more of the hand-things coming towards us. Five of them? We were outnumbered, and the way that bolt hit, we needed something that could kill them faster than his sword.

There had to be _something_, right? One of them was coming closer. There had to be some way to blast it like it blasted us. Some kind of magic or power...

Dark nodded at me. "Trust me."

"Okay..." I did, but what did that have to do with -- wait. I understood now. I needed to trust him, needed to believe in my power. "I do."

Fire. I didn't know why that thought popped into my head, but it did. Fire magic, and Dark Link could use it and --

I pointed at the closest Shadow, watching as Dark Link made some strange gesture with his hand out of the corner of my eye. I hoped this worked.

"Agilao!"

The Shadow screamed as a burst of fire exploded against it, dissolving into gray smoke.

"It worked!" Much better than a sword; were these things weak to magic?

Dark laughed as the other Shadows seemed to hesitate. "So, you little bastards don't like fire, do you? All right, then, there's more where that came from!"

It didn't take long to take the other four out, either, though I had a headache by the time we were done. Dark did say he could only manifest through my strength of will. Did that mean his power relied on my willpower too? That would explain my headache; I was running out of strength.

"Do you see any more, Dark?" I hoped the answer was no.

"I don't. I hear something over there, though. We should check it out."

I forced myself to nod; we did. If there were any more Shadows here... I had to stop them before anyone got hurt.

There _were_ noises, chittering and scratching and other things coming from the auditorium. I grit my teeth and grabbed the door handle. I hoped it was just some other students hiding, but the noises weren't human. Still, I had to know what was in there, had to take care of it no matter what it was.

I opened the door.

There were several more Shadows near the stage, and they were all running towards Sheik! I charged down the aisle towards them, hoping I could at least distract the monsters long enough for Sheik to get away. Sheik raised a weird looking gun and pointed it at his head; it looked like a toy or something.

"Sheik!"

"Link, get out of here!"

"No, I'm not leaving you behind!"

"I'll be fine," he said, oddly calm, then he pulled the trigger. There was a sound like glass breaking and a rush of energy, and then a bound and blindfolded figure appeared before him, arching its back.

"Maragilao!"

"Link!"

Everything around me seemed to burst into flames; oh, no, I was close enough it targetted me, too! I threw my arms up, though what could they do against... Wait a minute. I didn't feel like I was on fire, but when I opened my eyes, the flames were all I could see. How was this...?

The flames vanished, as did the Shadows.

Dark Link vaulted over some of the seats, landing in front of me with his shield held ready. "You're just lucky that was fire. Don't do that again."

"Sorry, but I -- Sheik!"

Sheik lowered the weird gun, staring at us in shock. The bound figure -- a woman, I think; it was hard to tell with all the bindings -- shimmered and then faded away. "How is... a Persona?"

Dark Link didn't say anything. He just held his ground -- or he would've, if not for the strange flicker than seemed to pass over him. He groaned and fell to one knee, and I had to close my eyes as pain lanced through my head. What was...?

"How is this possible?"

"How is _what_ possible?" I snapped.

Dark snarled. "I'm going to protect him, no matter what it takes."

"Link, what is this?"

I couldn't focus any more. I fell against one of the seats; I could barely even stand up anymore... "I'm sorry, Dark..." I felt him fade away, his card reappearing in my hand. I pressed the card against my chest, afraid I'd drop it.

_Don't apologize. Just be careful_.

"Link?" Sheik's voice was close now. "Link, how long... How long have you been able to do that?"

I didn't answer. I _couldn't_ answer. My head felt like something had cracked it open...

"Link, say something!"

"My head..." I managed to force out.

I felt a hand raise my head a little, though I kept my eyes shut. The motion alone was enough to make my headache worse.

"Sit still and catch your breath. You need to rest. How many times did you use your Evoker, Link? Do you remember?"

"Evoker...?" What was he talking about? "What is _that_?"

Sheik gasped. "Then how'd you summon your Persona?"

"I call him..." What was he even asking me? I called Dark, and he manifested... I'd show Sheik if my head didn't ache so much.

"That isn't possible!" Sheik sighed. "I'm going to go look around; you stay here and rest."

Did I really have much of a choice?

After a few minutes, I did feel better. I was still exhausted and sore, but my head didn't feel broken open anymore.

"Dark?" I asked softly.

_Yeah?_

"Just making sure you were there."

_Of course I'm here. I'm not going anywhere. You feeling any better?_

"A bit." I decided to try standing and hauled myself up to my feet. I could stand, good. I was sore, but considering what happened, I was lucky. Still, the first thing I was doing when I got home was a good hot shower. "The fire didn't hurt me."

_Nope. Fire can't touch me. And since I'm _your_ power, it can't touch you, either._ _Just don't get too carried away with it. Power is nothing if you can't manifest it._

"I pushed too hard, didn't I?"

_You did, or I did, one way or another. You hardly ever called me 'til now, and then we had to roast all those Shadows._ A chuckle. _I'm surprised you're even awake, really._

I started walking up the aisle. It had been quiet ever since Sheik left, so did that mean everything was all right?

_Hey, didn't he say to _rest_? That's not resting, Link_.

"I have to know if he's okay."

_Uh-huh. Link, let me spell this out. We don't know where Sheik went, we don't know if there are any more of those Shadows running around, you're a good breeze from falling over, and oh, yeah, you couldn't call me right now if you _had to.

I grit my teeth. He did have a point, but what if Sheik was hurt? If I could help, I had to try. I went to take another step and instead fell down to my knees.

_Okay, I overestimated. One step from falling over._

"I didn't fall over!" I just fell down. I still wasn't going anywhere, though; I knew that much. I was just so _tired_. "Is it always going to be like this?"

"My hope is that we'll eventually get used to this," Sheik said, easing the door behind him. "I managed to calm everyone down and send them home. It's over, for now."

I managed to pull myself up into a seat. "What's over?"

He sighed and walked over to sit behind me. "I'm not entirely sure."

Did he mean he didn't know what a Shadow was? "And that Evoker thing?"

"About time all of the Midnight Channel rumors started, I found a package on my desk. Inside was an Evoker, instructions on how to use it, and a letter saying I'd been chosen to protect the students from something called Shadows."

_Doesn't that just sound convenient. _

"I didn't believe it at first, but I tried it and... I have a Persona." Sheik sighed and stared at me. "You have a Persona but no Evoker. How's that possible? How did you even find this out?"

"The Midnight Channel."

"I should have known you'd try it."

"Have you?"

He shook his head. "I thought it was just more school gossip."

"Even after getting your Evoker?" Even after realizing that things weren't the way we thought they were? How could he _not_ look into it?

"I didn't see the point. I was practicing with my Persona."

I sighed. "What does she have to say about that?"

He gave me a worried look. "Are you feeling all right, Link? I thought you were just tired, but now you're worrying me."

_He can't hear her. _Dark sounded annoyed. _That explains why she's bound._

I looked down at the floor. "I _am_ just tired. You don't really understand what a Persona is, do you?"

"I know how to use it. Nothing else matters."

"Things aren't that simple." I sighed. "Those things are called Shadows, for one, and someone is bringing them here to hurt people."

Sheik didn't look like he believed me. "Does it matter? They were here, and I destroyed them."

"You're not the only one who struck them down," I muttered, looking down at Dark's card.

"Look, are you feeling any better? I can drive you home if I --"

I grit my teeth and forced myself up to my feet. "I'm fine, Sheik." He didn't believe me. He didn't even want to listen. "I can get myself home. Don't worry about me."

He didn't say anything as I staggered out of the auditorium, either. I didn't know where the strength to walk came from, but I managed to make it back to my classroom and fall into my chair. I'd get home eventually, but this was a fine spot to just sit and rest.

I shouldn't have done that. I shouldn't have just walked away like that, but... no. If he didn't want to believe me, I couldn't force him. For now, I'd catch my breath, and then head home and maybe see if I could get inside the TV again and find Nobody. Maybe he or Kishin had an idea for why the Shadows were at the school.

_I don't trust Sheik. Be careful what you tell him._

"Why don't you trust him?" I asked softly, pulling my cell phone out of my jacket pocket and flipping it open. Kafei called twice; must've been during the commotion.

_I don't trust anyone who can't accept himself._

"What are you talking about?"

_Like I said, that's why she's bound. He isn't calling his Persona forth; he's forcing her to do his bidding, regardless of what she might want or might say._

"That's possible?" I gasped as it hit me. "That's what that Evoker thing is for, isn't it? It forces his Persona out even if he can't or won't call it himself..."

_I think so. _Dark growled. _I don't trust him at all._

"I'll keep that in mind," I said. First things first: I needed to let Kafei know I was all right. I dialed his number.

"Where have you _been_?" Kafei demanded, answering after the first ring.

"It's a long story." And it was. "Where are you?"

"Outside the school; where are you?"

I sighed. I had a feeling he'd come here when I didn't answer. "I'm in my classroom. Just... be careful. There were Shadows here earlier. I'm pretty sure they're all dead, but be careful just the same."

"Will do." I heard keys jingling. "Be there in a couple of minutes."

I leaned back in my chair and sighed, setting my phone on the desk. This was all just crazy. All of it. Shadows in the school and a monster...

"You look like hell, Link."

"Thanks, Kafei," I said softly, still looking up at the ceiling.

"Sorry." He didn't really sound it. "Are you going to be okay? You look like you're about to pass out."

_That's because he is!_ Dark snapped.

"Dark, he can't hear you. You know that," I muttered.

I felt a hand on my forehead. "Kafei..."

He sighed. "I know part of it is being tired, but part of it --"

"Yeah, I'm hurt, I know. Not here." I just wanted to get out of here before something else happened. "Besides, I don't know where Sheik is."

"Sheik's here?"

"Long story short, Sheik has a Persona but something about it is wrong, so I'd rather not talk about it here."

Something warm and soft brushed my cheek; I didn't know why, but it made me feel less achy. "There," Kafei said. "That should help a little. Now let's get you out of here before something else happens."

---

We didn't talk about what happened the rest of the evening. Kafei and I both focused on other things until midnight, and then we hopped through the TV.

"Something is wrong," Kishin said. He and Nobody were waiting for us, one on either side of the entrance. If I hadn't seen his lips moving; I wouldn't have known who was talking.

"Yeah, some more Shadows got out," Kafei replied. "They attacked the school."

"Then that's why all the Shadows were running around earlier. They acted like they were following something, but Kishin and I couldn't find anything."

I took the chance to put on my monocle; I had a feeling I'd need it. "Did you see where they went?"

Nobody grabbed my hand and tugged me forward. "Over here."

There was something on the ground in the distance, something dark and weirdly-shaped, up against one of the strange railings. It looked like a drawing.

Dark Link grabbed my arm and pulled me backwards. "Careful."

"What is this?"

"It just doesn't feel right."

I sighed. It looked like some kind of fancy circle on the ground with a symbol in the center that looked familiar for some reason I couldn't explain. The markings didn't look right for paint, but it definitely wasn't chalk; the symbol looked like it was still damp. "Does anyone know what it is?"

"The Shadows were interested in it," Kishin replied -- at least, I thought it was Kishin. "They all seemed drawn to this particular spot, and then they all vanished. We weren't able to locate them after that point. We haven't seen or heard anything other than ourselves since then."

Keaton paced a circle around it, careful not to touch the marks as he sniffed them.

Kafei knelt next to me. "I don't like this."

"I don't either," I replied.

"I don't sense anything unusual," Keaton said, moving away from the circle before sitting.

I turned to Kishin. "They vanished from here?"

"Yes."

"I bet this is how they got to the school." There wasn't any other explanation; someone called the Shadows to the school for a specific reason. Earlier I could think this was a random thing, but now I was convinced. Someone somewhere was calling them. Someone intelligent was behind this.

"We can't just leave it here," Kafei said, shaking his head. "Today was bad enough, but there's that open house tomorrow. There are going to be a lot of people in that building tomorrow afternoon." He looked down at the symbol, tapping one finger against the cool floor. "We should be there. That way, if something happens..."

I sighed. "Sheik will be there. He has his Evoker, and there may be other people with Evokers, as well."

"Evoker?"

Kishin growled. "A device humans made to force a Persona out. It is a way to call a Persona forth even if the user lacks the will to do so or refuses to accept their Persona."

"Refuses to accept? You mean, if I had fought Dark, I wouldn't be able to call him?" That made sense, in a way. If I was using my strength of will to manifest him, then naturally, if I denied him...

Nobody nodded. "Yeah. A lot of people deny what they are inside. Everyone has a Persona, but not everyone can call it."

"It takes a particular combination of personal acceptance and mental strength for one to become a Persona-user. People like you and Kafei are rare," Kishin added. "Is there anything else you wish to do here? If not, I would recommend we move away from here. Someone was able to pull the Shadows from here; he may be capable of sending something this way, as well. It could be dangerous."

Dark put his hand on my shoulder. "He's right; we should move back."

"So what are we going to do, then?" I asked as we walked back towards the entrance.

"There may be others with Evokers."

"There surely are," Kishin said. "Most I'm aware of don't use them for long. It seems forcing out your Persona isn't something most tolerate for very long." By his voice, he knew something more than that, but he wasn't willing to elaborate.

That was fine. If there was some side-effect of it, maybe it could convince Sheik to stop. He wouldn't listen to me, but could he ignore his own body? Then again, he clearly ignored his own Persona...

"You know Link won't be able to sit back and let people get hurt," Dark said. He sounded proud about that. "So he'll probably be watching tomorrow. He may not have any students involved, but it's not like it would be weird if he was there."

"I'll probably be there, as well," Kafei said. "But we need to be careful, even if something happens. If there are other people using Personas..."

I nodded. "They may not be on our side."

Nobody tugged on my sleeve. "Are you going?"

"I don't know."

"He should," Dark said. "He pushed himself too far earlier. He needs the rest."

Nobody nodded. "You should, then. You need your strength. We'll watch from here."

I sighed. "I don't want to just run off; we haven't been here that long."

"And yet, in that time, we've been able to exchange information," Kishin replied. "That makes it worthwhile. As you said, this could be a sign of more trouble to come. What happened earlier could have been merely a test in preparation for tomorrow. After all, it is safe to say that whoever is calling these Shadows to your world is doing so for the sole purpose of causing as much destruction as possible. You should rest, especially if you pushed too far. Everyone has limits."

"Yeah," Nobody said with a nod. "And if nothing happens, we can talk more tomorrow. You need to sleep now."

That was a plan. I didn't think it was the greatest, but there was so much I didn't know. Were there other people with Evokers? How did Sheik get his in the first place?

Someone pushed me towards the entrance. "Come on, Link; you need to rest."

"Why is everyone so worried about me resting all of a sudden?" I snapped.

Keaton nudged my leg. "If you could see yourself, you'd see why. You look ready to pass out."

_Again_, I thought darkly. This just wasn't my day. I closed my eyes. "All right, I'm going. One way or another, tomorrow we're going to try and figure this out better."

"Of course." I couldn't tell if it was Kishin or Nobody. "For now, however, we should prepare for battle."

"We?"

"Yes, all of us." There was something he wasn't telling me.

"Fine. Then tonight we rest, and tomorrow we talk."

---

'Tomorrow' turned out to not be worth the fuss. Classes went perfectly normal. I overheard a couple of students laughing about being pranked while setting up for the open house, but that didn't make sense. They all thought it was just someone in a weird costume? How could that be? Those things weren't the least bit human.

But I couldn't prove it. The Shadows were gone, and there weren't even any signs of the battle. The hallway and the auditorium were both somehow completely undamaged, even though there had been fire there not even twenty-four hours before. The floor and walls should've been burnt or scorched or _something_, but there wasn't the slightest trace of anything.

It was as if it all _had_ just been a joke. But that wasn't possible, was it? No, I _knew_ what I'd seen. There was a reason I was so exhausted today, and it wasn't just not sleeping well.

I leaned against the wall and reached up to rub my temples.

_Come on; stop beating yourself up. Whoever's behind this is good at covering his tracks. We'll have to remember that. Besides, right now, this works in our favor, too. Unless you _want_ to have to try and explain little things like how the missing scorch marks got there?_

Dark was right. I couldn't exactly tell just anyone about him, after all. I'd sound crazy.

"There you are," Kafei said softly, leaning against the wall next to me. "I didn't see you, so I thought you left."

"I wish I did," I replied. "There's not much point in being here." The open house was almost over now, and nothing out of the ordinary had happened at all. It was almost _too_ normal, really. I didn't like it.

_We don't have to like it. We just have to deal with it._

I sighed and shook my head.

"People are already starting to leave. If someone wanted to do as much damage as possible, he's missed his chance."

"Maybe. Attacking tonight may not have ever been the plan. We might be jumping to conclusions." I hated to admit that, but maybe we were. Maybe yesterday was just a test in a location that was supposed to be empty. But test or no, if someone had the power to bring Shadows to this world, why would he want that power and what would he do with it?

I shook my head again. The more I thought about this, the less it made sense. "Sorry."

"It's all right, Link. This whole situation just..." Kafei sighed. "It just sucks."

"Yeah, it does." And there wasn't a single thing we could do about it.

"Let's just go home, okay? It doesn't seem like anything's going to happen here."

I nodded. "We should tell Kishin and Nobody."

"I say tomorrow. Tonight, I say you go rest and really rest. I know you didn't sleep very well last night. I can tell just by looking at you."

In some ways, I wished Kafei didn't know me like he did, but he was right. I barely slept last night. I was too worried about what could've happened tonight. "I said I'd talk to them tonight."

"Okay, then, I'll go let them know you need more rest. They'll understand." He put a hand on my shoulder. "Come on; let's just go."

"All right, I'm going. I just hate feeling so powerless."

"I do, too, but we don't have a choice right now."

Sheik walked past, holding the door open for what seemed to be the last of the students. He didn't seem to notice us. That was fine with me; I doubted he'd believe anything I said after yesterday.

_Let's just go before he notices us._

I nodded to Kafei, and we left. Tomorrow, I was going to talk to Nobody, and I was going to check if there were any festivals or similar in the near future. Something was going to happen; I only hoped I could figure it out ahead of time so I could try and stop it.


	4. Unmasked

****_Author's notes: Yeah, I think I got slower instead of faster. I know I've mentioned this on my profile, but I'll say it again here: I _will _finish this story. I can't guarantee any kind of posting schedule, but I can at least guarantee that I've never forgotten about nor dropped this story._

* * *

**Unmasked**

A month passed, a very, very long month. There were no signs of Shadows or anything weird that I could see around the school, and Nobody and Kishin couldn't find anything on their side, either. Kafei said that maybe it meant that whoever was behind this had given up, but I couldn't believe that.

It felt like the calm before the storm to me.

Maybe I was just being paranoid about the whole thing, but after the attack on the school, I couldn't call this just some weird coincidence or even some weird hallucination. I'd been caught off guard once. If I had anything to say about it, I'd never be caught off guard again.

There had to be a reason I had the power to manifest Dark. There _had_ to be.

With no other options, I started keeping an eye on Sheik, but even that came up empty. The only unusual thing I could find at all was the strange Evoker that he kept close. Several times during that month, I found myself wanting to ask him what he thought about the device and his Persona, but I still wasn't sure I could trust him. Yes, I'd considered him a friend, but at the same time, where had that Evoker come from in the first place? Someone somewhere had created a device that could call forth a Persona, and Sheik just happened to find it? That seemed too outlandish to be true.

The rumors about the Midnight Channel came and went, and then they came back again. I wasn't sure if I wanted people to remember the Midnight Channel or to forget it - after all, that Channel was how I discovered Dark Link. What would happen if someone awakened their Persona but then denied it, or worse, tried to abuse it?

At the same time, what could I say? If I tried to tell people it was dangerous, some would tune in just because a teacher said not to do it, and other people would think I'd lost my mind.

There was a laugh in my head. _People are good at missing the obvious_.

"I know," I replied under my breath.

_And _you_ are good at dwelling on things. Give it a rest already; you're not getting anywhere._

I stirred my drink with my straw, listening to the sound the ice as it rattled in the glass. "What else can I do? We're supposed to be looking for answers and preparing for battle. I'm not sure I've done either one."

_Oh, no, you're not preparing at all. After all, it's not like you spend most of your evenings pushing your limits on how long you can keep me manifested - oh, wait, you _do. _I do like playing with fire, though, so feel free to keep doing that part._

I sighed. "And you constantly nag me to take a break, so here I am." Maybe I should've called Kafei, but no. If we were both here, we'd end up talking about what's been happening. Not that being alone kept me from thinking about it.

_Yes. Take a break. Quit worrying about how a gathering of people could be a target for Shadows and all of that. You supposedly wanted to look around here, and all you're doing is staring into space._

'Here' was the patio of one of the downtown cafes. Today was the spring street fair. Normally, I'd wander around and take in the sights, maybe play some of their games, but this year I just couldn't focus. "I'm worried."

_Yeah, I _get it. _At the same time, look. You're stronger than you were at the school, so if some Shadows _do_ decide to show up, then we'll just roast them all. Personally, if I was looking for somewhere to attack, this wouldn't be it. There are way too many people, plus how many of these people have cameras? It's not worth it._

He had a point. If Shadows showed up here, thousands of people might see them. One thing I had figured out was that whoever was behind this was being stealthy about it. Shadows seemed almost made for that.

I sighed again and turned in my chair, looking out at the people wandering up and down the street on the other side of the patio railing. After a moment, I pulled my phone out and dialed Kafei. Maybe we would end up brainstorming again, but maybe not.

He didn't answer. "Hi, it's Link," I tell his voice mail. "It's nothing important; I was just wondering if you were up to the street fair. Talk to you later."

So much for that idea. I stuck my phone back in my pocket and went back to watching the people. It was a nice change of pace; for once, I was watching people just to watch them. I was still wary, but with all the voices and music and just general _sound_, I didn't have my ears straining to hear faint noises that might be there.

_Did you see that?_

"See what?"

_That kid..._

"Which kid?" There were a lot around, especially since there was a face-painting booth not far from my seat on the patio.

_Damn it; he just went across the street._

"What about him, Dark?"

Dark growled. _Nothing. He just looked like Nobody._

"He did?" Why would Nobody be _here_?

_Eh, I'm probably seeing things._

I shrugged. Aside from his mask, Nobody looked like a fairly normal kid. There were probably quite a few who'd pass for him at a quick glance. That had to be it.

I wished I'd brought a book with me; this was the perfect place to relax for a while. After a few minutes, I decided to try Kafei again. Again, all I got was his voicemail, though this time, I didn't bother leaving a message. One was enough. If I left more than one, Kafei might think something was wrong, and I didn't want to worry him.

_But it's fine for you to spend most of your day worrying._

"Dark..." I sighed. I wanted to say "it's not like that", but I knew that was a lie. And I just happened to be talking to the one person who knew good and well it was a lie, too.

_You can't protect everyone, Link. We've got our limits, even now. Even as stubborn as you are._

"I'll protect as many as I can. There has to be a reason I have this power, Dark. There has to be."

He sighed. _And if there's not?_

"I'm not letting that stop me." I looked out at the people wandering among the booths. "I'm not giving up."

_I know you're not going to. Even if you wanted to, I wouldn't let you._

That didn't surprise me. He was me, after all; of course he was just as stubborn as I was. It was probably a good thing we agreed with each other, or things would be incredibly complicated.

I stirred my drink again just to give my hand something to do while I went back to people-watching.

"Link!" It sounded like a kid; I didn't recognize the voice.

I looked around again, but I didn't see anyone who seemed to be trying to get my attention. Was I hearing things? Maybe I was.

"There you are!" the kid giggled. I turned towards the voice -

- and found myself staring at Nobody's mask. I didn't yell, but I did jump in my seat. "What the?"

"I didn't mean to scare you..."

Was it really Nobody, or was it just some random kid in a similar mask? "Do I know you?"

"Yeah, you do. Don't you - oh, right." He dug in a pocket and then held up a card, a large, glossy card with a picture of Kishin on it, massive sword held ready to strike. "See?"

It _was_ Nobody. "What are you doing _here_?"

"Looking for you." He sounded tired. It was weird how he sounded like a normal kid out here; was this _his_ voice? "I want to help."

"You have been helping." I took a drink.

"I don't want to be out of the way anymore. I want to _help_. I can't help over there, and you know it."

I shook my head. What could I really say? "So you found a way here?"

He nodded. "It took a while to find a way, but I did. Is it always this hot here?"

"Not always. Are you all right?"

He stared at my glass. "I'm thirsty..."

I slid the glass towards him. "Do you want some?" He didn't have a mouth; how could he drink it? "Oh, er, you should leave your mask on while you're here. You're... different."

He didn't answer; he was too busy working the straw under the mask and taking a drink. Now I was glad I hadn't ordered anything alcoholic.

"Does that help?"

He still didn't answer. His mask had worked its way up a little, high enough that when he moved his hand away, I could see his lips. Wait, lips? He didn't have a face!

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he finally said, turning to me and grinning broadly. "This is good." And he reached up and pushed the mask up onto the top of his head.

He had a face, a perfectly normal boyish face. Brown hair, blue eyes, and he looked about twelve or thirteen; but the weirdest part was that he reminded me of all my old school pictures. The resemblance was _eerie_.

"Is something wrong?"

"You look like you could be my brother."

"Really?" He felt his face, eyes wide. "That's so _cool_!"

"Do you have any family?" I couldn't believe I hadn't thought to ask earlier. All I could figure was that it wasn't something I thought of in the TV, but out here, especially now that he looked like any other kid...

"No, they didn't want me. Kishin protects me and has as far back as I can remember."

_They didn't want me_. Why did that make my chest ache a little? "What do you mean, they didn't want you?"

"They left, and no one else wanted me. I'm all alone except for Kishin."

The waitress came by then. I took the chance to get another glass for each of us; Nobody had already nearly emptied the one he had.

"Maybe you aren't. I was adopted when I was about your age."

"Adopted?"

"Yeah. My parents died in a car wreck, and my aunt and uncle adopted me. I don't really talk about it much."

Nobody just stared at me for a long moment. "Do you think someone would adopt me?"

I wanted to say yes, but _how_? He didn't have a name, he spent maybe years in that weird other world, and he might not even really be _human_ at all; it was pretty safe to say that legally, he didn't exist. At the same time... someone had to take care of him.

"Maybe so. For now, though, you can stay with me."

"_Really?_" He grinned broadly. "Okay!"

I hoped I wouldn't regret this. "What are we going to call you?"

"What do you mean?"

"I can't just call you 'Nobody'. We need to get you a name."

He curled up in the chair with the nearly-empty glass. "I used to have a name. I didn't need it when I became Nobody, but I used to have one."

"Do you remember what it was?"

He shook his head, giving me a weird look. "No, I don't. I didn't need it anymore, so I forgot it."

"I see... Well, maybe you'll remember it. And if you don't, I'll help you pick a new one." I had to call him something, after all. I leaned back in my chair. "Do you remember much of what happened before?"

"Nope." He finished the drink and set the glass on the table. "I was lonely. Then Kishin showed up, and he said I could hide behind his face, so I did. But I knew I couldn't hide behind his face here. I didn't think I'd actually get my own!"

The waitress stopped by with our drinks; he grabbed his with a quick laugh and a grin.

"It's so bright here," he said after a bit.

I couldn't hold back a smile. "That's how it is during the day. It'll get dark when night falls."

"Wow..." He was looking out at all the booths and people. How did he even manage to find me in the first place? I didn't know how long he'd been on this side of the TV or how he ended up at the street fair, but what were the odds of two people stumbling onto each other in a crowd this huge? It seemed too unlikely to me.

At the same time, I couldn't bring myself to ask him about it. I'd already had enough questions, and I hadn't even asked all of the important ones. He showed me Kishin's card - did that mean he could call on Kishin the way Kafei and I called on Keaton and Dark? And if he could, could I let him do it? This was dangerous, and Nobody was still very much a _kid_. I didn't feel right asking a kid to fight.

_But can you make him stand back and watch? You wouldn't be very willing to, now would you?_

"Shut up," I muttered, rubbing my temples again. "You're not helping."

Dark laughed. _I'm making a point_.

"Do you have a headache?"

"You could say that."

"Dark, be nice," Nobody said, giving me an odd look.

Maybe I _could_ bring myself to ask him. "Um, little guy," I couldn't call him Nobody, especially now that he had a face and not just a mask... "Can you use that card?"

"This one?" He pulled Kishin's card out and seemed to scrutinize it. "I don't know. What am I supposed to do with it?"

I got out Dark's card and held it so he could see it. "I use mine to call Dark when I need him." Really, I was beginning to think the card wasn't _really_ necessarily; the card seemed to serve more as a focus than anything else.

"Really?" His eyes went wide, and then he stared intently at the card in his hands. "That sounds cool."

I had a feeling I knew what he was considering. "There are a lot of people here; they'd all see if you called him. We probably shouldn't even be talking about this somewhere public."

"You're right..." He looked disappointed. "So what are we going to do now? When can we talk about this?"

I wasn't entirely sure, to be honest.

We ended up wandering the street fair, more for a lack of ideas than anything else. I could've taken Nobody straight home to talk and perhaps see if he could use his card, but... It didn't seem fair to pull him away from all the sights and sounds. He'd spent a long time on the other side of the TV where things were static and dull and lifeless; he might as well have the chance to enjoy this while he could.

"Wow, look at all the people over there!" Nobody said, grabbing my wrist and pointing at one of the booths.

The booth itself was unassuming except for a banner reading "Everyone has one, so what's yours? Secret Confessions, Saturdays at midnight on Channel 26!" Or at least I thought it was unassuming; it was hard to tell with all of the people gathered around it.

_Secret Confession... Isn't that what that paper said?_

Maybe it was; I was too busy thinking back to random conversations I'd overheard my students having when the talk of the Midnight Channel came back. One of the local stations, one that was nothing but static any other time of day, supposed aired a talk show at midnight every Saturday night... I hadn't thought much of it at the time; there were too many people talking about it for it to be the real Midnight Channel, so obviously it was an actual show. It didn't make sense, but it didn't seem dangerous, either.

"Ah, hello; are you familiar with Secret Confessions?" a man asked as Nobody and I approached the crowd.

"No," Nobody said, answering before I could. "What is it?"

"We're a show for those who need to get something off of their chests, so to speak. Our viewers submit their confessions to us - anonymously, of course - and our host reads selected ones on-air and adds his opinion. We're getting more popular, and we're always on the look-out for more secret confessions." The man smiled, but something seemed _off_ about it, like it was a little too forced. "Do either of you have something you'd like to confess?"

"Yeah!" Nobody said. "Can I?"

"Of course you can! Here, all you have to do is write your confession on this form and then put it in the box over there - and don't worry; we don't ask for your name or anything else identifiable, and we're not tracking which one of you submits which form. It's completely anonymous, so confess whatever you feel you should."

"Is it okay, Link?" Nobody asked, turning to look up at me.

I glanced at the man, but he'd already moved on to the next group who approached the booth. "If you want, I guess. I don't know much about it."

"Okay!" Nobody ran up to the table and waited for his form. When he got one, he stared at it for a moment before sliding his mask back on and staring at it some more. What was he doing?

Before I could ask, he ran back over to me, mask still on, waving the paper. "Link, look at this!"

It was a simple form, reading only "my secret confession" above several blank lines. I knew this form. I'd managed to forget about it, but I knew this form.

"Do you see it?"

"See what?"

"The paper! It's the paper from the TV!" He leaned in closer, lowering his voice. "The ones that make the Shadows angry!"

What? I dug my monocle out of my pocket, thankful I'd kept it on me, and slid it on. It _was_ the paper from the TV. Just like the one I'd found the night I met Nobody, what looked like empty space above the words held a strange symbol.

_Release the darkness and emerge the pain_, Dark said in my head, reading the words that ringed it.

How had I managed to forget this? I shook my head. No, I didn't have any proof that this was anything more than just something weird. Just because the Shadows got angry _when_ the papers appeared didn't mean they were angry _because _the papers appeared. Right?

Or was I overlooking something painfully obvious?

"What do you think we should do?" I asked softly.

"I don't know. Should we submit a confession, just to see?"

Maybe so. That would be one way to test it out, submit one and see if anything weird happened. "If you want, sure."

Nobody pushed his mask up onto his forehead again and frowned. "I don't have anything to confess, though."

"Then let me; I can find something."

He nodded. "Okay. You write a confession, and I'll go put it in the box."

_And just what are you going to confess, huh?_

I wasn't entirely sure. It was supposedly anonymous, but how anonymous was it? I pulled a pen out of my pocket and started writing: "I know something only a few people know. I feel guilty for not warning people, because it's dangerous, but at the same time, I don't want them to think that I'm crazy, so I can't tell them."

Then I folded the paper in half and handed it to Nobody. "Here we go, one confession."

Nobody nodded and ran back over to the booth, dropping the paper into the box. I hoped I hadn't just made a big mistake.

"Let's go to my place, little guy. I think I want to get away from the crowds for a while."

Nobody nodded again. "Okay."

"_What_?" Kafei gasped, staring at Nobody and me with wide eyes. "_This_ is Nobody? But he looks normal! How'd you do that?"

"I don't know how," Nobody replied, looking down at his mask. "I know when I left the other world, I needed to wear Kishin's mask to see. But when I got here, I could drink, so I decided to try taking it off to see what happened." He grinned. "And I have a face!"

"I don't get it..." Kafei shook his head. "That doesn't make any sense." He sighed. "And I doubt there's anything you can say to make it make any sense, so I guess I'll just go with it. I think, honestly, I'm more interested in how you got out of the TV. Kind of weird to think that's more interesting than how you got a face."

Probably because "how did you get out?" was the easier question to answer, I thought. There wasn't really much else to explain it.

Nobody shook his head. "It's hard to explain. I can show you next time you're in the TV. It'd be faster that way."

"Fair enough. We'll go check that out later tonight. I'm curious how you got here. I thought the only way in was through Link's TV."

"Nope, there are lots of portals. This one's just the one you two use." Nobody took a bite of the candy bar I gave him earlier. "I'm not sure exactly how the portals connect, but I think the connection between here and the TV is weird anyway."

Dark chuckled in the back of my head. _I don't think that's the only thing weird about this situation._

"Oh, right!" Nobody jumped up off of the couch and started digging in one of his pockets. "I've got something for you, Kafei. I wanted to give it to you earlier, but I hadn't seen you, so..." He held out something small and round and reflective.

Kafei took it. "A monocle? Is this like the one you gave Link?"

"Yeah! It took me a while to make it, but if you're going to keep going in the TV, you need to be able to see, too." Nobody grinned. "So here's yours. Now you and Keaton can see through the haze."

Kafei slid the monocle on over his right eye and looked around. "I don't see anything different here."

I had to laugh. "There's not much on this side of the TV that you need the monocle to see."

"Do you have one of these, little guy?"

Nobody slid his mask off of where he had it perched atop his head and held it up with a grin. "My mask works the same way."

"At least we'll all be able to see," I said. It was good to know; now I didn't have to worry as much about being ambushed by Shadows hiding in the haze.

Kafei's cellphone rang. He sighed. "Give me a minute; it's Sheik." He ducked out onto my tiny balcony. I couldn't really hear him through the door.

"Link, what night is that confession show?"

"It's..." Oh, damn. "Tonight."

"We should watch it before we go into the TV." Nobody sounded nervous.

I couldn't say I blamed him. "Yeah, you're right. We can try comparing the show with the Shadows and see if we find anything unusual."

He nodded. "Kishin agrees."

_Are you sure you're not just curious about whether or not they'll read your little confession? _Dark chuckled. _I do agree, though. We need to figure out if these confessions really are connected to the Shadows or not._

The more I thought about it, the less sure I was that I wanted to know what connection there was. Something nagged at me, a sinking feeling in my stomach that had been there ever since I wrote that confession. I tried to put that out of my mind, but I couldn't.

_Stop dwelling on it. In a couple of hours, one way or another, it'll make more sense._

I wasn't sure I believed him.

"Hey, Link, do you want to talk to Sheik?" Kafei asked, walking back inside. "He's got some questions about the Midnight Channel."

I sighed but took the phone. "Link here; what is it?"

"The figure you summoned on campus that day, the man who made you fireproof... Did you see him on the Midnight Channel?" Sheik sounded like he'd seen a ghost.

"Yes."

"Was he bound when you saw him?"

"No." Dark never had been bound; he never would be if I had anything to say about it.

Sheik sighed heavily. "I watched it last night. The Midnight Channel, I mean. I saw a woman. But when I use this Evoker, all I see is a figure bound in thick cloth and leather. Why is there a difference? Do you know?"

I shook my head, ignoring Dark's angry growl. "From what I've been told, an Evoker forces your Persona to manifest and do your bidding. I don't need to _force_ Dark to do anything. I call on him, so he's not bound."

Sheik was quiet for a while, long enough that I wondered if the phone had dropped the call. Then, finally, "Could you teach me how you do that?"

"What, is your Evoker not enough?"

"I... I'll tell you in person. I'm not comfortable talking about that on the phone. Is it okay if I come over?"

I had to think about that. He wanted help, help I could give, but... could I trust him enough to tell him? I bit my lip.

_Tonight's a good night. You, Kafei, Nobody... If he tries to pull something, it'll be one idiot with a bound Persona versus three skilled Persona-users. It'll be a piece of cake to kick his ass if he gets out of line. I say let's see what he seems to have learned. I'm curious as to what blew up in his face._

Was that what happened? Did something go wrong with his Evoker?

"Link? Are you still there?"

"Yeah, I'm here." I looked over at Kafei and Nobody and nodded at them. "Sure, you can come over. Maybe we can clear a few things up."

"Thanks, Link. I'll be there when I can."

I hung up and handed the phone back to Kafei. "I hope that wasn't a mistake."

"It's okay," Nobody said. "Kishin says we can take him if he causes trouble."

Apparently Kishin and Dark thought alike. That was good; it meant Dark wasn't overreacting. "I'd rather not have to attack him," I said, walking back over and sitting on the couch. "I'm just kind of relieved I'm not the only one considering it."

"You're not." Kafei laughs nervously. "I was considering it, too."

I nodded. "At least we all agree about that. If there's anything you want to do to get ready, now's the time to do it."

"Link, can you show me how you call Dark?" Nobody. Damn, I _was_ going to show him how to do that. We didn't have long, but there might be time, and honestly, I'd prefer if he knew how.

Just in case.

I stood in the middle of the room. My apartment wasn't that big, but I wouldn't need that much space just to manifest Dark. We weren't going to be fighting, after all.

"Okay, here's how I do it." I held up my card. "I picture him standing here next to me, and then I break this. You have to focus on what you want to happen, or it won't work." I crushed the card in my hand, and Dark appeared next to me with the all-too-familiar tug at my mind.

"Cool!" Nobody said, jumping up to his feet. "That's so awesome! Is that how you do it, Kafei?"

Kafei nodded. "Pretty much. I don't think you have to break the card, but it gives me something to focus on, and it helps me keep the image in my head."

I nodded at that. The card wasn't necessary, but it was incredibly helpful. At some point, I wanted to try and get away from the card, but that 'some point' wasn't tonight.

Nobody stared at his card for a moment and then nodded his head. He held up his card with both hands, took a deep breath, and then ripped the card in half. And then I couldn't see him any more, because Kishin stood in front of him.

Damn, I knew Kishin was tall, but he's taller than I thought. The room looked smaller with him standing there. I stepped sideways so I could see Nobody; he stared up at Kishin with a broad grin.

Kishin turned to him and smiled gently. "I see you're well."

"Yay, now I can defend myself!" Nobody said, pumping his fist in the air. "This is so _cool_!"

"There's something amusing about seeing such a massive Persona come from such a little boy," Dark said; his voice said he was smirking.

"Is there?" Kishin replied, turning to Dark. "There's also something amusing about such a dark Persona coming from such a normal man."

I looked away at that. Me, normal? I didn't I was that normal, not really...

"Hey." Dark nudged me. "We're joking, okay? Trust me; Kishin and I get along. I won't have any issues fighting with him."

Kafei shifted on the couch. "What about Keaton?"

"Keaton's better at magic, right?" Dark shrugged. "Keaton can throw spells from behind us. We'll keep things busy. I can't speak for Kishin, but this armor isn't just for show."

Kishin chuckled. "Nor is mine."

There was something we were all forgeting. "If it does come to a fight, we need to be careful. This is an apartment, not a battlefield."

Dark sighed. I hoped that meant he understood - we couldn't use his fire magic. If we did, we ran the risk of setting my apartment on fire. And if _my_ apartment caught fire, it wouldn't take much for the _rest _of the building to go up with it.

Hopefully things wouldn't come to that. Hopefully Sheik really did just want to talk and wasn't coming to cause trouble...

I took a deep breath and blew it out, releasing my focus as I did. Dark faded away, his card reappearing in my hand. "All we can do now is wait."

Just wait and hope that this wasn't going to be a huge mistake.


End file.
